Cat with a scratch on his eye PLEASE HELP!

My cat Kato received a small (minor) scratch to his eye a couple days ago, after which was immediately flushed with saline solution. We've been checking on him periodically for the last 48 hours and the scratch appears to be gone however he's been keeping his eye closed or half shut. There's no swelling, no weeping, and no apparent pain when you touch the eyelid, and I checked for abscesses, but there are none of those as well. What is going on; why is he keeping his eye closed? Is there something else I should check for?We're in tight money these days so we really can't afford to take him to the vet if it's a problem that's small enough for us to be able to take care of, but we love our cat dearly and will take him if need be. I'm slightly worried =/ I don't want to ignore something that could be potentially problematic to him later on, so please, if anyone can give advice or help I'd appreciate it!

Oh no, that does not sound like much fun:( When it comes to the eyes of a cat, they are certainly something they use every day. My cat has dry eye, which means she does not produce tears. When her eye really starts to bother her, she paws at it, which means it’s time for some drops.

You said your cat was squinting. Is she also pawing at her eye? I know it may sound hard, but try and avoid checking on the eye every minute. Remember that you pawing at the eye could cause an infection or even swelling. I think the best thing for you to do is wait and see, but through observation.

If her eye was scratched, she may have an ulcer (scratch on the eye). These will generally heal on their own, but may not if your cat keeps scratching at it. This could make it worse. If you keep catching your cat pawing at her eye, you may need to go to the vet. Hope this helps!

You'll be happy to know that he's doing ab it better today. His eye has opened up a bit and he's actually using it now. We've lessened the amount of times we check it as I did read it can cause more harm that good. He hasn't been really scratching at it, and when he does I usually stop him abruptly. (He hates it, but I can see it hurts to scratch it so) THANK YOU for answering! I can't tell you how much I appreciate knowing I can find help :) I was really worried last night because like I said, he wasn't using his eye and it was either shut so squinty half the time, but I was happy to see he is now using his eye again. the scratch has turned into a small very faint white blur which we're keeping an eye on carefully, but he's no longer squinting :)Thank you again MsJane1975 for answering and showing interest. I shall keep you posted if you like? I asked on other sites but they all asked for money and funding is tight right now so as much as I wish I could have spared the money I really couldn't so I am very glad to see someone is kind enough to help out for free.

You are very welcome! I know what its like to love your pet, and how worried us concerned pet owners get when they are hurt. Times are tough for a lot of people now, I just hope things get back to the way they were soon.

In terms of the eye, I am going to share a quick story. I hope it helps, and at the very least, helps give you better idea of knowing when its time to see a vet. My little kitty, snow flake, has a bad eye caused by dry eye. I took a week vacation and boarded her, but they did not do a great job keeping up the eye drops. As a result, when I got home she had scratched her eye and it resulted in a ulcer. She was really pawing at her eye so I decided it was time to see the vet. When I got their, they tested the eye, and sure enough she had scratched it. They said it would heal on its own, but to help protect it they gave me a cone. About a week later when I went in for my follow up check up, things had healed The short of all this is that you need to really do your best to help prevent the eye from getting worse.

It sounds like things are getting better, which is a great sign. Just remember that if things get worse, you may have to see a vet. A good, expensive option, is try and find a local vet school. They usually give good deals and are less expensive. Anyway, I am glad things are better, and yes, please keep me posted.

Hi! I came across your post because i was googling on what to do if a cat gets scratch in the eye. My cat (, Storm ) got scratched in the eye around a week ago and i brought him to the vet after a day of noticing it didn't get better. The vet only gave him a few wipes on the eye and prescribed him with an eye drop. But after a week of giving him the eyedrops, it doesn't look like his eye is getting better and like you mentioned about your cat, he isn't opening his eye. Pls help me. How long did it take for your cat to open his eye?